Sheet fed paper tray paper retaining assembly

ABSTRACT

A retaining assembly to properly position sheet paper in-fed to a paper tray, the assembly including an arm member positioned above the paper tray parallel thereto and extending in the direction of the length of the paper tray from an in-feed end of the paper tray, the arm having a deflector member depending therefrom adjacent the in-feed end, the deflector member movable towards and away from the bed of the paper tray and contacting a sheet of paper fed to the paper tray from the in-feed end to deflect it towards the bed of the paper tray.

United States Patent [191 Lee [ Nov. 11, 1975 1 SHEET FED PAPER TRAY PAPER RETAINING ASSEMBLY [76] Inventor: Harold Douglas Lee, 517 Maple Ave., Carpentersville, 111. 60110 Filed: June 13, 1974 Appl. No.: 478,857

U.S. Cl 271/181; 271/224 Int. Cl. B65H 29/44 Field of Search 271/177, 180, 181, 220, 271/223, 224, 176, 178 182, 184, 207, 188, 174, 221, 222

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3.630.517 Enskat .1 271/220 Weidenhammer 271/182 Primary E.\'aminerEvon C. Blunk Assistant Examiner-Bruce H. Stoner, Jr.

Attorney, Agent, or FirmHill, Gross, Simpson, Van Santen, Steadman, Chiara & Simpson 5 7 ABSTRACT A retaining assembly to properly position sheet paper in-fed to a paper tray, the assembly including an arm member positioned above the paper tray parallel,

thereto and extending in the direction of the length of the paper tray from an in-feed end of the paper tray, the arm having a deflector member depending therefrom adjacent the in-feed end, the deflector member movable towards and away from the bed of the paper tray and contacting a sheet of paper fed to the paper tray from the in-feed end to deflect it towards the bed of the paper tray.

8 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures U.S. Patent Nov. 11,1975 She et1of2 3,918,701

as i FIT-A US. Patent NOv.11,1975 sheetzofz 3,918,701

SHEET FED PAPER TRAY PAPER RETAINING ASSEMBLY BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to a sheet handling paper device and more particularly to a paper stacking and retaining assembly for use in connection with automatic sheet fed paper trays. I

2. Prior Art High speed copying and printing devices which utilize sheets of paper often have associated therewith a paper receiving tray into which individual sheets of paper are directed by the machinery. Because the paper can enter the in-feed end of the tray while moving at appreciable speeds, it has been common practice to position a deflecting and retaining member above the end ofthe-imfeed tray. Such members are normally pivotally attached in spaced relation to the in-feed end so that a sheet of paper passes between the bed of the tray and the member. Thereafter the sheet of paper contacts the member which retains it in place on the bed of the tray. Because the member is pivotable, as the number of sheets of paper in the tray increase, the arm will move to accommodate them.

However because paper, and particularly paper fed through high speed machinery, exhibits different characteristics under different weather conditions, such prior art devices have not proved to be completely successful. A specific example of the failure of the prior art system is the fact that when weather is dry, a static electric charge often builds up on the surfaces of the paper. As the paper is fed into the tray, the prior art member deflects it down towards the bed of the tray where it immediately contacts previously fed sheets of paper. The

7 static charge between the two sheets can cause them to adhere to one another. This can result in a bunch up of paper adjacent the in feed end of the tray interferring with proper movement of succeeding sheets of paper.

I have determined that a significant contributing factor to this problem is the fact that the prior paper deflecting members rest on top of the stack of paper in the tray. In this manner the entering sheets of paper must pass between the previously trayed sheets and the deflecting member which has its end remote from the in feed end in contact with the previously trayed paper. This causes the newly received sheet of paper to contact the previously trayed paper immediately adjacent the in feed end or closely spaced therefrom. This means that the newly received sheet must be in contact with the previously received sheets for a great portion of its normal travel distance within the tray. However, elimination of the deflecting member presents other serious problems in that there is nothing to cause the infed sheets of paper to settle to the bed of the tray prior to the time a succeeding sheet of paper begins to arrive in the tray. This can also result in bunching.

A further disadvantage of the prior art structures arises from the fact that the amount of force necessary to lift the deflecting member in order to allow the new sheet to flow into position, is oftentimes dependent upon the number of sheets previously received in the tray. As the number of sheets build up, the angle of the deflection member with respect to the path of the infed sheet changes. This can cause a difference in force required to lift the deflecting member which can, in

turn, greatly change the flow characteristics of the paper sheets as they enter.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION My invention overcomes the above mentioned disadvantages of the prior art and provides a new type of paper retaining assembly. My paper retaining assembly includes an arm member which is pivotably attached to the machinery adjacent the in-feed end of the paper tray. The arm member extends parallel to the paper tray away from the in-feed end and is spaced from the bed of the paper tray a distance greater than the maximum storage depth of the paper tray. The arm terminates in a down turned stop member which contacts the bed of the paper tray thus closing off the end of the paper tray remote from the in-feed end.

0 arm in the direction of the bed of the paper tray. The

deflector has an attachment end pivotably attached to the arm adjacent the in-feed end of the tray and a free end positioned above the arm downstream of the infeed end of the tray. The free end is limited in its movement. The intermediate portion of the deflector, intermediate the attachment end and the free end of the deflector is positioned to contact an in-fed sheet of paper to deflect it towards the bed of the tray in the direction of the stop member. Because the deflector is relatively small in comparison to the arm, the amount of force necessary to move it up away from the bed is minimal. Further, because the arm is spaced from the bed of the paper tray, its weight do es not rest on the paper already received. In addition, the deflector is also spaced sufficiently from the bed of the tray so that although it contacts the in-fed sheet of paper, the limited movement placed upon its free end prevents it from contacting previously received sheets of paper when the tray is relatively empty thereby reducing the angle of deflection of the incoming paper.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a device in connection with an in-feed paper tray which aids in directing fed paper into proper storage position in the tray while reducing the tendency of the in fed paper to bunch up adjacent the in-feed end of the tray.

It is a more particular object of this invention to provide a paper retaining'assembly which includes an arm positioned above the bed of a paper tray, the arm having a deflector member depending therefrom, the de flector member contacting paper fed into the tray, and the deflector member being pivotably attached to the arm.

It is .yet another and more particular object of this invention to provide a paper stacking and retaining assembly for use in connection with a sheet fed paper tray including an elongated arm member positioned above the bed of the tray having a stop member associated therewith remote from the in-feed end of the paper tray to limit movement of the paper within the tray away from the in-feed end and with a movable deflector member depending from the arm into the path of a sheet of paper fed into the tray to deflect the paper towards the bed of the tray, the deflector member not being in contact with the bed of the tray.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be readily apparent from the, following description of a preferred embodiment thereof, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, although variations and modifications may be effected without departing from the spirit and scope of the novel concepts of the disclosure, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of an inspection tray equipped with the retaining assembly of this invention as shown intermediate a conveyor from a press and a collator; 7

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary side plan view partially in section of the inspection tray and retaining assembly of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the retaining assembly of this invention;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary sectional plan view of the deflector portion of the retaining assembly of this invention;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the attachment end of the deflector of FIG. 4 taken along the lines V--V of FIG. 4;

FIGS. 6 and 7 are .views similar to FIG. 2 illustrating the action of the retaining assembly of this invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT FIG. 1 illustrates an inspection tray 10 equipped with a retaining assembly 11 and used in connection with a paper in-feed conveyor 12 and a collator l3 collator conveyor 14. The in-feed conveyor 12 may be from a printing press, multilith, copying machine or the like which individually feed sheets of paper. In this assembly, the conveyor 12 supplies paper to the conveyor 14 which in turn supplies it to the collator 13. A trip mechanism 15, illustrated in FIG. 2, functions to deliver a I single sheet of paper from each press run of like sheets to the inspection tray 10. Rotating drivers 16 keep the paper moving from the conveyor 12 to the inspection tray 10 so that the paper P enters the in-feed end 20 of the paper tray with appreciable speed.

The paper tray consists of a bed 22 forming the base of the tray, a Z-shaped cross section in-feed end wall 23, and partial side panels 24. For purposes of this document, the end of the paper tray which is positioned adjacent the conveyor 12 and which initially receives a sheet of paper from the conveyor 12 is referred to as the in-feed end of the paper tray. I

Ananchor member is attached to walls 31 of the machinery and is spaced above the bed 22 of the tray adjacent the in-feed end 20 and, as illustrated, above the top wall of the Z-shaped cross section in-feed end wall 23 so that a sheet of paper passing between the drivers 16 will pass under the anchor member 30 and above the bed of the tray 22.

It has been common in the prior art to attach a pivotable arm member to the anchor member 30, the arm member extending downwardly from the anchor member into contact with the bed 22 of the tray. Such prior art devices function to direct the paper towards the bed of the tray and to retain the paper in the tray. Without the use of such an arm member or other retaining assembly. the speed of the paper could be sufficient to force it entirely away from the tray beyond the remote end 33 of the tray.

My invention provides a new type of retaining assembly 11 which has a first end attached to the anchor member in a pivotable manner. As illustrated the first end is curved to provide a bight section 41 whichjreceives the anchor member. A bolt and nut 42 secure the first end 40 to the anchor member 30. An arm 44.

projects from the first end along the length of the bed 22 to a second end 45 which projects at an angle 46 to the major portion of the arm down into contact with the bed 22 to provide a stop member 47. The arm, in

the preferred embodiment illustrated, is formed of two pieces 48 and 49 with the piece 48 including the first end and the major portion of the arm and the piece 49 including the second end 45. The piece 49 is formed as a right angle piece having a leg thereof forming the stop I member 47 and a second leg underlying a portionof the piece 48 and bolted thereto as at 50. A slot 51 ex- I tending along a portion of the length of the piece 48 re ceives the bolts from the piece 49 to attached piece 49 to the piece 48 in an adjustable manner whereby the position of the stop member 47 with respect to the infeed end wall 23 is adjustable according to the length of the paper to be fed into the tray. Cooperating openings 52 in the bed and a notched end 53 on thebottorn of the stop member 47 position the stop member and therefore the retaining assembly with respect tothe bed of the tray according to the length of the paper. It is to be appreciated that the height of the stop member 47 is approximately the same as the distance between the bed of the tray and the anchor member 30 whereby the 7 arm 44 extends parallel to the bed of the tray. In this end 62 consists of a curved portion of the metal of the.

deflector which is freely received around a split bolt 65.

The arm has a slot 66 therein centrally positioned with respect to the width of the arm. The split bolt is re ceived over the arm with the peripheral portions of the 4 arm adjacent the slot 66 received in the split ofthe bolt. A nut and washer cooperate with the head 69 of the bolt toenclamp the bolt to the arm. Positioned within the slot are a pair of nutmembers '70 received around the bolt and the attachment end 62 of the deflector. In

this manner the attachment end while securely attached to the arm is pivotable with respect to the arm.

The deflector intermediate portion 63 is curved and depends through the slot to the area below the arm and above the bed of the tray reaching a low point 64 intermediate the ends of the slot. Thereafter the deflector curves upwardly again passing through the slot and ter- 1 minates in an angled free end 64. The free end 64 has a slot 72 therein. A post 73 is attached to the arm as by means of a bolt 74 and projects therefrom passing through the slot 72 in the free end. The post 73 termi nates in a rubber abutment member 76 retained on the post as by a threaded fastening means 7'7. The post bed 22 of the tray, however the deflector does project into the path of a sheet of paper P entering the tray area from the in-feed end 20.

Since the bed of the tray is generally positioned angled from the vertical with the arm 44 positioned above the bed, gravity will maintain the deflector in a full depending position. Thus the entering sheet of paper P will strike the deflector. Because the jogger is-relatively small in comparison with the length of the arm, and is relatively light weight, the striking offlthe deflector by the paper may cause the deflector to pivot around the attachment end 62 thereby lifting the free end 64 up the post or limiting member 73. In doing so, however, the paper will be deflected towards the bed of the tray as illustrated in FIG. 6. The angle of curvature of the deflector is such that the paper will strike a curved surface of the deflector rather than a flat wall and therefore the force imparted to the paper by contact with the deflector would not be sufficient to stop movement of the end of the paper. Thus the paper continues to move with respect to the tray until it hits the stop member formed as the second end of the arm. Thereafter by gravity, the paper will fall back until it contacts the infeed end wall of the tray. As this continues, and paper builds up in the tray, the deflector is free to move upward on the post as illustrated in FIG. 7. Thus although the deflector may, when the paper tray becomes relatively full, contact the top resting sheet of paper in the tray, by the time it does so, the deflector member free end will begin to move up the post thereby changing the angle with which the deflector will contact the paper. Thus the movement of the paper will change to the arrowed line illustrated in FIG. 7. Again because the deflector is relatively light weight and relatively small, the force of the paper striking the jogger can still cause the deflector to move thereby limiting the affect of the deflector on the paper.

It has been found in tests utilizing this retaining assembly that the activity of the deflector on the paper will cause the paper to stack properly in the tray bed irrespective of the atmospheric conditions and therefore, irrespective of the build up of static electricity on the paper.

FIG. 7 also illustrates a modified form of the deflector where a second rubber washer member 85 is received around a post 73 below the free end 64 of the deflector. This member 85 can be used where it is desired to reduce the maximum projection of the intermediate portion of the deflector below the arm.

In the preferred embodiment both the rubber washer 76 and the washer 85 if used are movable on the post to allow adjustments of the limited movement of the free end of the deflector. In order to reduce the chance of a static charge building up on the retaining member, preferably all parts of the retaining member, including the deflector, will be made of metal and will be in contact with one another and grounded through the anchor member. However in other instances, it may be advantageous to make the deflector member of a light weight material or a material having friction-reducing properties.

It can therefore be seen from the above that my invention provides a paper tray assembly including a paper retaining assembly which consists of an arm member which extends longitudinally of the paper tray in parallel spaced relation to the bed of the paper tray and which terminates in a stop member extending downwardly into contact with the paper tray. The arm. has a deflector depending therefrom which is pivotablyattached to the arm adjacent the in-feed end of the paper tray and which depends therefrom into the path of a sheet of paper P entering the in feed end of the paper tray. The deflector is free to move with respect to the bed of the paper tray and to the arm and is effective to cause the paper to be deflected down towards the bed of the tray and against the stop member without causing the paper to bunch up interiorly of the tray area.

Although the teachings of my invention have herein been discussed with reference to specific theories and embodiments, it is to be understood that these are by way of illustration only and that others may wish to utilize my invention in different designs or applications.

I claim as my invention:

1. A sheet fed paper tray paper retaining assembly comprising: an elongated arm positioned over a bed of a sheet fed paper tray, the bed being angled upwardly from the horizontal from an in-feed end thereof, the arm having a major portion thereof substantially parallel to the bed of the tray, the arm having a first end pivotably suspended above the tray at the in-feed end of the tray whereby paper entering the tray passes between the first end and the in-feed end of the tray, a deflector member having portions thereof depending from the elongated arm spaced from the first end, the deflector member having an attachment end pivotably attached to the elongated arm and a free end movable towards and away from the elongated arm with an intermediate portion depending from the arm towards the tray bed, the pivotable attachment being loose and allowing free rotation of the deflector at the pivot, the intermediate portion being movable away from the bed and being positioned to contact the sheet of paper entering the feed end of the tray-to deflect the paper towards the bed of the tray.

2. The assembly of claim 1 wherein the intermediate portion is curved and depends from the arm through a slot in the arm with the deflector member free end positioned above the arm away from the tray bed.

3. The assembly of claim 2 wherein means are provided to limit movement of the deflector member free end.

4. The assembly of claim 3 wherein the arm has a post attached thereto projecting away from the arm remote from the bed of the paper tray, the deflector member free end having a slot therein, the post extending through the slot, the post having an enlarged head portion remote from the arm effective to limit movement of the deflector member free end away from the arm.

5. The assembly of claim 4 wherein the arm has a second end remote from the first end, the second end projecting at an angle from the remainder of the arm towards the tray bed and contacting the bed of the tray forming a stop member limiting movement of the paper within the tray.

6. The assembly of claim 5 wherein the stop member is movable with respect to the first end of the arm.

7. A paper tray assembly for receiving and storing a plurality of sheets of paper fed into the tray one at a time from one end thereof comprising a paper tray having a bed extending from an in-feed end, the bed extending upwardly at an angle to the horizontal from the in-feed end, an anchor member positioned above the in-feed end with a first end of a paper retaining assembly arm pivotably attached thereto, the arm extending away from the in-feed end in spaced relation to the bed substantially parallel thereto and terminating in a second end projecting at an angle to the remainder of the arm into contact with the bed to form a stop member limiting movement of a sheet of paper fed into the tray from the in-feed end, the arm having a movable deflector member pivotably attached thereto intermediate the first and second ends and capable of substantially free partial rotation at the pivot, the deflector member having a portion thereof depending from the arm towards the bed, the portion positioned to contact a sheet of paper fed into the tray.

8. The assembly, of claim 7 wherein the deflector member includes an attachment end pivotably attached to the arm, a free end remote from the attachment end 1 free to move towards and away from the tray bed upon pivoting of the attachment end, a limiting member attached to the arm limiting movement of the free end and a curved intermediate portion of the deflector de-: 7

pending from the arm and curving towards the bed from the attachment end and thence away from the bed 1 ing the bed. 

1. A sheet fed paper tray paper retaining assembly comprising: an elongated arm positioned over a bed of a sheet fed paper tray, the bed being angled upwardly from the horizontal from an in-feed end thereof, the arm having a major portion thereof substantially parallel to the bed of the tray, the arm having a first end pivotably suspended above the tray at the in-feed end of the tray whereby paper entering the tray passes between the first end and the in-feed end of the tray, a deflector member having portions thereof depending from the elongated arm spaced from the first end, the deflector member having an attachment end pivotably attached to the elongated arm and a free end movable towards and away from the elongated arm with an intermediate portion depending from the arm towards the tray bed, the pivotable attachment being loose and allowing free rotation of the deflector at the pivot, the intermediate portion being movable away from the bed and being positioned to contact the sheet of paper entering the feed end of the tray to deflect the paPer towards the bed of the tray.
 2. The assembly of claim 1 wherein the intermediate portion is curved and depends from the arm through a slot in the arm with the deflector member free end positioned above the arm away from the tray bed.
 3. The assembly of claim 2 wherein means are provided to limit movement of the deflector member free end.
 4. The assembly of claim 3 wherein the arm has a post attached thereto projecting away from the arm remote from the bed of the paper tray, the deflector member free end having a slot therein, the post extending through the slot, the post having an enlarged head portion remote from the arm effective to limit movement of the deflector member free end away from the arm.
 5. The assembly of claim 4 wherein the arm has a second end remote from the first end, the second end projecting at an angle from the remainder of the arm towards the tray bed and contacting the bed of the tray forming a stop member limiting movement of the paper within the tray.
 6. The assembly of claim 5 wherein the stop member is movable with respect to the first end of the arm.
 7. A paper tray assembly for receiving and storing a plurality of sheets of paper fed into the tray one at a time from one end thereof comprising a paper tray having a bed extending from an in-feed end, the bed extending upwardly at an angle to the horizontal from the in-feed end, an anchor member positioned above the in-feed end with a first end of a paper retaining assembly arm pivotably attached thereto, the arm extending away from the in-feed end in spaced relation to the bed substantially parallel thereto and terminating in a second end projecting at an angle to the remainder of the arm into contact with the bed to form a stop member limiting movement of a sheet of paper fed into the tray from the in-feed end, the arm having a movable deflector member pivotably attached thereto intermediate the first and second ends and capable of substantially free partial rotation at the pivot, the deflector member having a portion thereof depending from the arm towards the bed, the portion positioned to contact a sheet of paper fed into the tray.
 8. The assembly of claim 7 wherein the deflector member includes an attachment end pivotably attached to the arm, a free end remote from the attachment end free to move towards and away from the tray bed upon pivoting of the attachment end, a limiting member attached to the arm limiting movement of the free end and a curved intermediate portion of the deflector depending from the arm and curving towards the bed from the attachment end and thence away from the bed to the free end, the limitation of movement of the free end preventing the intermediate portion from contacting the bed. 